Episodes
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Adrian Lahoud is an architect, urban designer, researcher, and the dean of the School of Architecture at the Royal College of Art. Previously he was director of the MA program at the Centre for Research Architecture at Goldsmiths and a research fellow at Forensic Architecture. In this conversation, Jarrett and Adrian talk about the intersection of decolonization and decarbonization, architecture as a site for posing problems, and fostering an interdisciplinary research culture. This episode originally aired on December 6, 2023.
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Peter Mendelsund is a graphic designer, writer, and musician. Until recently he was the associate art director at Alfred A. Knopf where he designed book covers for everyone from James Joyce to Franz Kafka, Stieg Larsson and Simone De Beauvoir. In 2014, he published What We See When We Read and Cover and will publish his first novel, Same Same, next year. In this conversation, Peter and I talk about his relationship to graphic design, working across mediums and disciplines, and the differences between writing fiction and nonfiction. This episode originally aired on May 2, 2018.
Since we spoke, Peter became the creative director of The Atlantic and published his second novel, The Delivery. This week, he has two new books out, Exhibitionist, a memoir, and Weepers, a novel. -
Missing episodes?
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Sarah Whiting is an architect, writer, editor, and the current dean of Harvard GSD. She is a design principal and co-founder of WW Architecture and from 2010 to 2019, she served as the dean of Rice University's School of Architecture. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on architecture's relationship with politics, economics, and society. Her writing has appeared in a range of publications from ANY to Wired and she's edited a variety of books, periodicals, and anthologies. In this conversation, Jarrett and Sarah talk about the value of interdisciplinarity, the intersection of theory and practice, and why editing is core to her practice. This episode originally aired on March 29, 2023.
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Hans Ulrich Obrist is a a curator, critic, and art historian. He’s the artistic director of the Serpentine Galleries in London and the author of many books, including Ways of Curating, A Brief History of Curating, and Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Curating But Were Afraid to Ask. In this wide-ranging conversation, Jarrett and Hans talk about the role of conversation and interviews in his work, the evolution of the Serpentine Pavilion, and why it’s important that the art world is still his home base. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/271-hans-ulrich-obrist.
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Sarah Ichioka is an urbanist, strategist, curator, and writer. She’s the author, with Michael Pawlyn, of Flourish: Design Paradigms for our Planetary Emergency and the founder of Desire Lines, a disciplinary studio that helps places, communities, and organizations chart paths toward thriving futures. In this conversation, Jarrett and Sarah talk about moving beyond sustainability towards regenerative practices, how thinking about the climate crisis as a cultural problem changes the role of designers, and why curiosity is a driving force in her work. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/270-sarah-ichioka.
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Matt Owens is co-founder and Chief Design and Innovation Officer at Athletics, a brand studio based in Brooklyn, and author of the book, A Visible Distance: Craft, Creativity, and the Business of Design. A graduate of Cranbrook’s Graphic Design Program, he previously worked as an art director for Methodfive, founded a small design studio, One9nine, and self-published the Flash-experimental design quarterly Volumeone. In this conversation, Jarrett and Matt talk about the gap between graphic design education and practice, the parallels between design today and design in the 1990s, and why Flash was a transformative piece of design software. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/269-matt-owens.
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Lara Lesmes and Fredrik Hellberg are the founders of Space Popular, an architecture studio that explores relationships between media and the built environment through research, design, and artworks. They are also professors at the Institute of Architecture at the University of Applied Arts Vienna where they run the Architectural Design Studio 2. In this conversation, Jarrett talks with Lara and Fredrik talk about the relationship between virtual and physical spaces, how media shapes architecture, and the role of the architect in shaping digital environments. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/268-lara-lesmes-fredrik-hellberg.
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Julian Bleecker is a researcher, designer, engineer, and entrepreneur. He runs Near Future Laboratory, a platform and consultancy focused on design fiction. He is the author of Design Fiction: A Short Essay on Design, Science, Fact, and Fiction and co-author of The Manual of Design Fiction, among other titles. In this conversation, Jarrett and Julian talk about the origins of design fiction, how he applies it with corporate clients, and how we can get design students to rediscover imagination. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/267-julian-bleecker.
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Mike Pepi is a critic and technologist who writes about art, culture, and technology. He is the author of the new book, Against Platforms: Surviving Digital Utopia, which is both a work of technology criticism and an analysis of how we talk about Silicon Valley. His other writing has appeared in Frieze, e-flux, Artforum, and The Brooklyn Rail. In this conversation, Jarrett and Mike talk about the role of criticism, the differences between platforms and institutions, and why Silicon Valley needs the art world more than the other way around. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/266-mike-pepi.
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Elizabeth Diller is a partner and co-founder of Diller Scofidio + Renfro where she’s worked on a range of buildings including New York’s The Shed, the Highline, and an expansion of MoMA. Since 1981, the studio’s practices has spanned architecture, urban design, installation art, multi-media performance, digital media, and print, all of which is featured in their new monograph Architecture, Not Architecture. In this conversation, Jarrett and Elizabeth talk about the evolution of her practice and approach to architecture, thinking about design both as problem solving and cultural production, and how a generation of paper architects changed the field. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/265-elizabeth-diller.
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Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin are the founders of Formafantasma, a research-driven design studio based in Milan and Rotterdam that investigates the ecological, historical, political, and social forces shaping the discipline of design. In this conversation, Jarrett talks with Andrea and Simone about the role of research in their studio, moving between critical investigations and commercial commissions, and how the studio is trying to redefine the role of design today.
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Nicolay Boyadjiev is an architect and creative director based between Copenhagen, Sofia and Mexico City. He is the Director of the Practice Lab at re:arc institute, where he oversees research, strategy and new explorations prototyping alternatives models for philanthropy in architecture. Previously, he was Co-Director of Strelka Institute’s influential design-research program in Moscow. In this conversation, Jarrett and Nicolay talk about his work at re:arc, new forms of funding architectural projects, and thinking about philanthropy as a design project.
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Jack Murphy is the executive editor of The Architect’s Newspaper. He studied architecture at MIT and Rice University and previously edited PLAT Journal and Cite, the publication of the Rice Design Alliance. In this episode, Jarrett and Jack talk about the history of The Architect’s Newspaper, the value of printed publications, and the relationship between design practice and design publishing. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/262-jack-murphy.
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Gregory Wessner is the Executive Director of the National Academy of Design, the New York-based non-profit founded in 1825 that promotes art and architecture in America through exhibition, education, and research. Before joining the National Academy, Gregory served as executive director of Open House New York, and in a variety of roles at the Architectural League of New York. In this episode, Jarrett and Gregory talk about the structure of the National Academy and how it serves artists and architects as it approaches its 200th anniversary, the changing definitions of design, and the value of non-profits in architecture and design media. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/261-gregory-wessner.
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Noemi Biasetton is a design researcher, writer, and editor whose work focuses on design cultures and visual representation within the social and political dimension. She is the author of Superstorm: Design and Politics in the Age of Information, which was published earlier this year. In this episode, Jarrett and Noemi reflect on the design and media of the 2024 election, the changing roles of design in political discourse, and the increasingly complicated overlap of politics, media, and communication design. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/260-noemi-biasetton.
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Federica Sofia Zambeletti is an architect, researcher, and storyteller. She’s the founder and managing director of KoozArch, a digital platform and research studio that explores architecture beyond the limits of the build form, which she founded in 2014 while she was a student at the Architectural Association. In this conversation, Jarrett and Federica talk about the origins and evolution of KoozArch, the state of architecture media, and the role of conversation in design discourse. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/259-federica-sofia-zambeletti.
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Petra Blaisse is the founder of Inside Outside, an Amsterdam-based design studio that focuses on textiles, interior design, gardens, and landscapes. Known for her long-running collaborations with OMA, Petra began her career in 1978 at the Stedelijk Museum in the department of Applied Arts. A new book on the studio’s work, Art Applied, was released earlier this year. In this conversation, Jarrett and Petra talk about the differences between design and applied arts, the role of collaboration in her practice, and what she learned about herself in helping to put this new book together. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/258-petra-blaise.
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Lesley-Ann Noel is a designer, researcher, and educator. She’s the author of Design Social Change and a co-editor of The Black Experience in Design. Earlier this year, Lesley-Ann was appointed the dean of design at OCAD University and she previously taught at North Carolina State University, Tulane University, Stanford University, and the University of the West Indies. In this conversation, Jarrett and Lesley-Ann talk about the role of design in social change, the value of utopian and abolitionist thinking, and the relationship between designed objects and cultural transformation. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/257-lesley-ann-noel.
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Taylor Levy and Che-Wei Wang are the founders of the art and design studio CW&T. Founded in 2009, CW&T has produced human-scaled objects like pens, clocks, and tape dispensers engineered to last multiple generations as well interactive software, art installations, and more. In 2022, they were the recipients of the 2022 National Design Award for product design from Cooper Hewitt. In this conversation, Jarrett talks with Taylor and Che-Wei about the role of experimentation in their design process, the overlap of physical and digital design, and the challenges with staying independent. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/256-taylor-levy-che-wei-wang.
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John Ochsendorf is an engineer, educator, and designer. He’s the founding director of the MIT Morningside Academy for Design and has faculty appointments in the departments of architecture and civil engineering at MIT. From 2017-2020, he served as the director of the American Academy in Rome. In this conversation, Jarrett and John talk about Morningside’s goals and how they are spreading design across MIT’s campus, the relationship between design and engineering, and why it’s a good thing that it is so hard to define design.Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/255-john-ochsendorf.
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